Computer keyboard

ABSTRACT

Embodiments of the present invention are directed to a computer keyboard having user-manipulable components for multi-media applications and additional computer interface and control purposes that are desirably designed for ease of manufacturing and cost effectiveness. A preformed roller module has a small top cover and base forming an enclosure to hold the entire roller mechanism, including the electronic components. The roller module is then attached to the keyboard. A volume control dial is provided for audio volume control. The dial desirably is also preformed and then attached to the keyboard. Keyboard feet may be provided on the rear edge of the keyboard for tilting the keyboard without taking up space at the bottom of the keyboard, so that the keyboard height profile can be kept low. An opaque keyboard frame may be placed over the key mechanisms of the keys to hide them from sight, and a translucent top case may be placed over the opaque keyboard frame. The keys protrude through openings of the opaque keyboard frame and the translucent top case.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to computer keyboards (corded or wireless)and, more particularly, to a computer keyboard having user-manipulablecomponents for multi-media applications and additional computerinterface and control purposes. In keyboard manufacturing, it isdifficult to control tolerances on a large molded piece for the top orbottom case of the keyboard. This problem is exacerbated when buttonsother than standard keyboard buttons and other components or devices areadded to the keyboard.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention are directed to a computer keyboardhaving user-manipulable components for multi-media applications andadditional computer interface and control purposes. These components aredesirably designed for ease of manufacturing and cost effectiveness. Apreformed roller module has a small top cover and base forming anenclosure to hold the entire roller mechanism, including the electroniccomponents. The roller module is then attached to the keyboard. The useof the preformed roller module eliminates the need to control toleranceson a large molded piece of the top case of the keyboard to accommodatethe roller components. A volume control dial is provided for audiovolume control. The dial desirably is also preformed and then attachedto the keyboard. Keyboard feet may be provided on the rear edge of thekeyboard for tilting the keyboard without taking up space at the bottomof the keyboard, so that the keyboard height profile can be kept low.

In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, a keyboardcomprises at least one keyboard foot coupled to an edge of the keyboard.The keyboard foot is movable between an inclined position with thekeyboard foot extending downward from the edge below a bottom of thekeyboard, and a neutral position with the keyboard foot disposedadjacent the edge above the bottom of the keyboard. In some embodiments,the keyboard foot is rotatably coupled to the edge of the keyboard by ahinge to rotate between the inclined position and the neutral position.The edge may be a rear edge of the keyboard.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a keyboard comprisesa keyboard module having a keyboard body. A preformed roller module isfixedly attached to the keyboard body, and includes a preformed rollermodule housing having a slot and a user-manipulable roller partiallyexposed through the slot. The preformed roller module housing includes arotational support to support the roller in rotation relative to thepreformed roller module housing around a rotational axis of the roller.The roller module is operatively coupled with the keyboard module tointerface with the keyboard module.

In some embodiments, the preformed roller module housing includes atranslational support to support the roller for movement in translationrelative to the preformed roller module housing in a directionperpendicular to the rotational axis of the roller. A spring is coupledbetween the translational support and the preformed roller modulehousing.

In specific embodiments, the preformed roller module includes a switchwhich is activated by moving the roller in translation to contact theswitch. The spring is a coiled spring which biases the roller away fromthe switch. The roller is disposed on a first side of the switch and thecoiled spring extends from the first side of the switch to a second sideof the switch opposite from the first side. The coiled spring includes aspring support extension disposed on the second side of the switch. Thespring support extension supports the coiled spring on the second sideto facilitate smooth translational movement of the roller relative tothe switch. The spring support extension is supported on the rollermodule housing.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a keyboardfor a computer comprises a user-manipulable volume control dial disposedon a keyboard surface of the keyboard for controlling an audio volume ofthe computer. The volume control dial includes a cylinder having anundulating surface and an axis generally perpendicular to the keyboardsurface. A spring is biased against the undulating surface of thecylinder to produce a ratcheting movement of the cylinder duringrotation of the cylinder to provide tactile user feedback. In specificembodiments, the spring is biased against a smooth surface of thecylinder to produce a frictional feedback to the user (i.e., noratcheting).

In some embodiments, the spring includes a cylindrical portion incontact with the undulating surface of the cylinder. The volume controldial is movable toward and away from the keyboard surface, and thespring biases the volume control dial away from the keyboard surface.The volume control dial may be preformed and attached as a preformedmodule to the keyboard. The cylinder includes a plurality of slits. Aphotoemitter is mounted on a first side of the cylinder to direct lightthrough the slits in the cylinder. A photodetector is mounted on asecond side of the cylinder, opposite from the photoemitter, to detectlight from the photoemitter passing through the slits in the cylinder.The positions of the photodetector and photoemitter can be switched.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a keyboard comprisesa plurality of keys having key mechanisms connected thereto. An opaquekeyboard frame is placed over the key mechanisms to cover at least asubstantial portion of the key mechanisms.

The plurality of keys protrude through openings of the opaque keyboardframe. A translucent top case is placed over the opaque keyboard frame.The plurality of keys protrude through openings of the translucent topcase.

In some embodiments, the opaque keyboard frame has a generally smoothupper surface visible through the translucent top case. At least onemodule, such as a roller module or a multi-media module, may protrudethrough openings of the translucent top case.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the keyboard according to an embodimentof the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the keyboard of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a rear elevational view of the keyboard of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a left side elevational view of the keyboard of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a right side elevational view of the keyboard of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 6a and 6 b are right side elevational views of the keyboard ofFIG. 1 schematically illustrating the keyboard feet;

FIG. 7 is a lower perspective view of a roller module according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is an upper perspective view of the roller module of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a volume control dial mechanismaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a top plan view of the volume control dial mechanism of FIG.9; and

FIG. 11 is an exploded view of the keyboard of FIG. 1 showing atranslucent top case according to another embodiment of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS

FIGS. 1-5 illustrate a computer keyboard 10 including a body or housingwhich desirably has a low profile. For example, the height of the bodymeasured from the bottom 12 is equal to or less than about 21-23 mm overa large portion of the keyboard, and increases to a maximum of about 34mm toward the rear of the keyboard in one specific embodiment, as bestseen in FIGS. 4 and 5. The keyboard body has a length (from the leftside 14 to the right side 16) of about 490 mm and a width (from thefront side 18 to the rear side 20) of about 220 mm. Of course, thekeyboard 10 may have other dimensions.

As best seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, the keyboard 10 includes a multi-mediamodule 26 having a plurality of control members such as buttons andknobs. One of the control members is a volume control dial 30 forcontrolling an audio volume of the computer. The keyboard 10 furtherincludes a roller module 36 which includes buttons 38 for activatingbutton switches underneath and a roller 40 protruding through a slotprovided on the top cover of the roller module 36. The roller module 36is desirably preformed prior to being assembled with the remainder ofthe keyboard 10. The keyboard 10 includes a recessed region forreceiving the preformed roller module 36. These features of the keyboardwill be described in more detail below.

FIGS. 6a and 6 b illustrate tilting of the keyboard 10 using one or morekeyboard feet 44. Conventional keyboard feet are disposed at the bottomof the keyboard, and tend to increase the height profile of thekeyboard. For a low profile keyboard, relocating the keyboard feet 44 tothe side of the keyboard can maintain the low profile. The keyboard feet44 are movable between a neutral or folded position (FIG. 6a) and aninclined position (FIG. 6b). In the specific embodiment shown, the feet44 are each rotatably attached to the side of the keyboard 10 by a hinge46. In the neutral position, the feet 44 are folded onto the side of thekeyboard above the bottom 12 with a zero degree tilt. In the inclinedposition, the feet 44 extend downward from the side of the keyboardbelow the bottom 12 to produce tilting of the keyboard. Typically a pairof keyboard feet 44 are disposed along the rear side 20. In analternative embodiment, for example, a pair of keyboard feet may bedisposed on opposite sides along the left edge 14 and the right edge 16near the rear of the keyboard 10 (FIGS. 1-5).

The preformed roller module 36 is illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8. Theroller module 36 has a base 50 and a top cover 52 forming a rollerenclosure or housing. When assembled, the roller enclosure is fixedlyattached to the keyboard body. A roller 40 protrudes through a slot ofthe top cover 52 to allow manipulation by a user. The roller 40 ismounted on a movable translational support 60, for instance, by a shaftextending from the support 60 through the center axis of the roller 40.The roller 40 includes slits which permit light to pass therethrough. Aphotoemitter 57 and a photodetector 58 are disposed on opposite sides ofthe roller 40. The photodetector 58 detects light emitted by thephotoemitter 57 and passing through the slits of the roller 40, anddetermines the amount of rotation from the number of times thephotodetector 58 is illuminated. The undulating surface 59 of the roller40 can be used to produce a ratcheting effect during rotation of theroller 40 to provide user tactile feedback.

The support 60 guides the movement of the roller 40 up and down relativeto the roller module housing. This allows a user to press down on theroller 40 and the support 60 to contact and activate a switch 66. Aspring 70 is mounted to the support 60 to bias the support 60 upward andreturn the support 60 and the roller 40 to the upper position away fromthe switch 66 when the user removes the downward force on the roller 40.FIGS. 7 and 8 show a coiled spring 70 mounted at one end 62 of thesupport 60. Guide columns may be provided in the roller module housingto guide the support 60 or roller 40 during movement relative to theswitch 66. In another embodiment, a spring coupled to the guide columncan be used to bias the support 60 upward instead of the spring 70.

In the embodiment shown, the roller 40 moves in translation to provide“clicking.” In another embodiment with no “clicking,” the support forthe roller 40 is fixed in position so that the roller 40 rotates butdoes not move in translation.

The roller module 36 is operatively coupled with the keyboard 10 tointerface with the keyboard 10 and the computer. For instance, therotation of the roller 40 and translation of the roller 40 to activatethe switch 66 may be used to manipulate a cursor on the computer screen.In one example, the rotation of the roller 40 may be used for scrollinga document on the computer screen, and the translation of the roller 40may be used to pop up a roller configuration menu on the screen.

The use of a preformed roller module 36 is advantageous for ease ofmanufacturing and cost savings. It is difficult to control tolerances ona large molded piece for the top case of the keyboard 10. The use of thepreformed roller module 36 eliminates the need to do so for the roller36 and pushbuttons 38. The preformed roller module 36 has a small topcover 52 and base 50 forming an enclosure to hold the entire rollermechanism, including the electronic components. This results in a moreeffective design for incorporating the roller feature into the keyboard.The module 36 can be more precisely manufactured in a cost-effectivemanner. The module 36 makes the roller feature more visible andintuitive to the user, and can be separately manufactured, assembled,and tested.

As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the switch 66 is disposed below the support60, and the roller 40 is disposed on one side of the switch 66. Thespring 70 extends from the side of the switch 66 where the roller 40 isdisposed to the opposite side of the switch 66. As the roller 40 ispressed down, it may tend to tilt the translation mechanism to one sideof the switch 66, and cause friction as well as wear and tear. Toovercome this problem, the spring 70 desirably includes a spring supportextension 72 disposed opposite from the roller 40 and supported on thebase 50 to provide balanced and smooth translational movement of theroller 40 as the support 60 moves up and down.

FIGS. 9 and 10 illustrate the internal mechanism of the volume controldial 30. The dial 30 includes a cylinder 80 having an axis which may begenerally perpendicular to the surface of the keyboard 10, althoughother orientations are possible. The cylinder 80 includes a plurality ofslits 82 which permit light to pass therethrough. A photoemitter 84 anda photodetector 86 are disposed on opposite sides of the cylinder 80.The photodetector 86 detects light emitted by the photoemitter 84 andpassing through the slits 82 of the cylinder 80, and determines theamount of rotation from the number of times the photodetector 86 isilluminated.

The cylinder 80 includes an undulating surface 88. A spring 90 contactsthe undulating surface 88 to produce a ratcheting effect during rotationof the cylinder 80 to provide user tactile feedback. For smoothoperation and feel, a small cylinder 92 is attached to the spring 90 tocontact the undulating surface 88. In another embodiment, the spring isbiased against a smooth surface of the cylinder to produce a frictionalfeedback to the user (i.e., no ratcheting).

The volume control dial 30 may be movable toward and away from thekeyboard surface, so that the user may press down on the dial 30 to turnit on and off, for example. The spring 90 may be coupled to the cylinder80 in a manner to bias the dial 30 away from the keyboard surface andreturn it to an upper position upon removal of the force applied by theuser.

The volume control dial 30 may be preformed prior to being assembledwith the remainder of the keyboard 10. As in the case of the rollermodule 36, the use of a preformed dial 30 eliminates the need to controltolerances on a large molded piece for the top case of the keyboard 10.Thus, the module 36 can be more precisely manufactured in acost-effective manner.

In FIG. 11, the keyboard 10 includes an opaque keyboard frame 102 and atranslucent top case placed over the opaque keyboard frame 102. Thekeyboard frame 102 includes a plurality of openings through which theplurality of keys protrude. The keys have key mechanisms connectedthereto. The opaque keyboard frame 102 is placed over the key mechanismsto cover and hide from sight at least a substantial portion of the keymechanisms, as well as electronics, cables, connectors, membranes,screws or other fasteners, and the like. The opaque keyboard frame 102is extended as much as possible across the keyboard to cover and hideunderlying key mechanisms. The upper surface of the keyboard frame 102is visible through the top case 104, and desirably is generally smoothand free of ribs, screw bosses, gates, ejectors, and the like. The uppersurface of the frame 102 may be surface treated by, for example,texturing, ribbing, polishing, or the like.

The top case 104 includes a plurality of key openings 110 through whichthe plurality of keys protrude. Module openings 114 are provided toaccommodate the protruding multi-media module 26 and the roller module36. The top case 104 may be surface treated, for example, to produce ahigh gloss surface.

The above-described arrangements of apparatus and methods are merelyillustrative of applications of the principles of this invention andmany other embodiments and modifications may be made without departingfrom the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the claims. Forexample, the shapes, sizes, and locations of the various components ofthe keyboard may be changed. The roller 40 may have a different positionor a different orientation (e.g., horizontally disposed instead ofvertically disposed), and there may be a plurality of rollers. Asmentioned above, the volume control dial 30 may product ratcheting or noratcheting during rotation. The scope of the invention should,therefore, be determined not with reference to the above description,but instead should be determined with reference to the appended claimsalong with their full scope of equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A keyboard comprising: a keyboard module having akeyboard body; a preformed roller module fixedly attached to thekeyboard body, the preformed roller module including a preformed rollermodule housing having a slot and a user-manipulable roller partiallyexposed through the slot, the preformed roller module housing includinga rotational support to support the roller in rotation relative to thepreformed roller module housing around a rotational axis of the roller,the roller module being operatively coupled with the keyboard module tointerface with the keyboard module, wherein the preformed roller modulehousing includes a translational support to support the roller formovement in translation relative to the preformed roller module housingin a direction perpendicular to the rotational axis of the roller; and aspring coupled between the translational support and the preformedroller module housing, wherein the spring comprises a coiled springwhich biases the translational support and the roller away from theswitch, wherein the roller is disposed on a first side of the switch andthe coiled spring extends from the first side of the switch to a secondside of the switch opposite from the first side.
 2. A The keyboard ofclaim 1 wherein the coiled spring includes a spring support extensiondisposed on the second side of the switch, the spring support extensionsupporting the coiled spring on the second side to facilitate smoothtranslational movement of the roller relative to the switch.
 3. Thekeyboard of claim 2 wherein the spring support extension is supported onthe roller module housing.
 4. A keyboard comprising: a keyboard modulehaving a keyboard body; a preformed roller module attached to thekeyboard body, the preformed roller module including a preformed rollermodule housing having a slot and a user-manipulable roller partiallyexposed through the slot, the preformed roller module housing beingformed separately from the keyboard body, the preformed roller modulehousing including a rotational support to support the roller in rotationrelative to the preformed roller module housing around a rotational axisof the roller, the roller module being operatively coupled with thekeyboard module to interface with the keyboard module, wherein thepreformed roller module housing includes a translational support tosupport the roller for movement in translation relative to the preformedroller module housing in a direction perpendicular to the rotationalaxis of the roller; and a coiled spring coupled between thetranslational support and the preformed roller module housing, whereinthe keyboard body includes a recessed region for receiving the preformedroller module housing having the slot, wherein the preformed rollermodule includes a switch which is activated by moving the roller intranslation to contact the switch, and wherein the roller is disposed ona first side of the switch and the coiled spring extends from the firstside of the switch to a second side of the switch opposite from thefirst side.
 5. The keyboard of claim 4 wherein the coiled springincludes a spring support extension disposed on the second side of theswitch, the spring support extension supporting the coiled spring on thesecond side to facilitate smooth translational movement of the rollerrelative to the switch.
 6. The keyboard of claim 5 wherein the springsupport extension is supported on the roller module housing.